Revamped Foursquare tells you where to check in

Foursquare, a location-based social media service, unveiled a revamped app Thursday that helps people find things nearby even before they ask.

"We've torn the app apart and rebuilt it anew, Extreme Makeover style. Say hello to the all new foursquare!" the company said in a blog post.

The big change will be giving suggestions on things to do nearby based on habits of the customers and their friends, through the "Explore" feature.

"Our re-imagined Explore gives you ideas of where to go the moment you open it up (you don't even have to search)," the company said.

"We tell you where your friends are... where you can save money, and what you might like nearby. We even know if you're in your home neighborhood or traveling and adjust the recommendations.

"It's not the one-size-fits-all approach to local discovery you're used to; it's smart, because it's customized based on each of your check-ins, your friends' check-ins and the more than 2,000,000,000 check-ins from the foursquare community," the company added.

It vowed the revamped app was "just the beginning."

An estimated one in four Americans uses location-based services such as Foursquare, according to a recent survey. Nearly six out of 10 smartphone owners -- 58 percent -- use a geosocial or a location-based information service of some kind.

Foursquare, which has some 20 million members, lets people log their locations by "checking in" from where they are at any given moment using smartphones or other Internet-linked devices.

The satellite location tracking capabilities of smartphones or mobile signal tower triangulation allow Foursquare to estimate where members are when they check in.

People's whereabouts and text comments, if any, are then shared with selected circles of friends at Foursquare.

Foursquare rewards users with virtual "badges" for accomplishments, such as traveling to distant places or frequenting boats or trains.

Some businesses have started offering deals to Foursquare users who check in on premises.